Sangeeta Dhawan, Ph.D.

626-256-4673
Sangeeta Dhawan
Associate Professor, Department of Translational Research & Cellular Therapeutics
Research Area
Epigenetics
Islet Development, Function, and Survival
Diabetes Pathogenesis
Beta-cell Regeneration
Research Teams
Translational Research & Cellular Therapeutics
Sangeeta Dhawan, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Translational Research & Cellular Therapeutics. She received her Ph.D. from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India, where she studied the developmental regulation of silk gland formation in the silkworm Bombyx mori. She did her postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School and UCLA. Her training at UCLA focused on understanding the mechanisms of beta cell mass regulation and was supported by an advanced postdoctoral fellowship from JDRF. Dr. Dhawan has been a recipient of the Start-up Award and the Smookler Award for Diabetes Research from the Larry L. Hillblom Foundation, a Transition Award from JDRF, and the Human Islet Research Network (HIRN) New Investigator Award.
 
She has served as a standing member of the American Diabetes Association (ADA)’s Research Grant Review Committee as well as an ad-hoc reviewer on several NIH study sections. She currently co-hosts the virtual “Islet Research Seminar Series” along with leading islet biologists from UCLA, Mayo Clinic, Washington University, and University of Montreal. Dr. Dhawan also peer-reviews for many high-impact journals such as Nature, Nature Communications, Science, Science Advances, Science Translation Medicine, Journal of Clinical Investigation, Journal of Experimental Medicine, Diabetes, and Diabetologia, and is currently an Associate Editor with Frontiers in Endocrinology. Research in the Dhawan Lab is currently supported by the National Institutes of Health. 
 

Dr. Dhawan's group is interested in understanding the biology of the insulin producing beta cells. Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes result from the loss of beta cells, making beta cell replenishment a very important therapeutic goal. Approaches to this end include generating beta cells from stem/iPS cells, as well as protecting and regenerating the endogenous beta cells. The successful outcome of each of these approaches demands the generation of abundant numbers of functional beta cells that are survival competent in the diabetic milieu. With this in mind, the research in Dhawan laboratory focuses on understanding the epigenetic and cellular signaling pathways that regulate the formation, function, regeneration and survival of pancreatic beta cells during development, and under circumstances that warrant the repair/regeneration of beta cells. The Dhawan lab leverages this knowledge to understand the dysregulation of epigenetic processes in beta cells during diabetes pathogenesis, and identify novel targets for the prevention and reversal of beta cell loss in diabetes. The Dhawan lab uses genetic approaches, lineage tracing, human islet culture, and high throughput sequencing techniques to address these questions.

Location

Education & Experience

Degrees

  • 1995 -1997, B.Sc., Biochemistry, Sri Venkateswara College, Delhi University, New Delhi, India

  • 1995 - 1997, M.Sc., Biochemistry, South Campus, Delhi University, New Delhi, India

  • 2003, Ph.D., Developmental biology of the silk gland in the silkworm Bombyx Mori, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India

Fellowship

  • 2005 - 2008, Postdoctoral Fellow, Larry L. Hillblom Islet Research Center, Department of Medicine/Endocrinology University of California Los Angeles

  • 2004-2005, Post-doctoral Fellow, Department of Developmental and Regenerative Biology, Mount Sinai School of Medicine

  • 2003-2004, Postdoctoral Fellow, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical, Center Harvard Medical School

Professional Experience

  • 2023-present, Associate Professor, Department of Translational Research and Cellular Therapeutics, Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute, City of Hope, Duarte, CA

  • 2017-2023, Assistant Professor, Department of Translational Research and Cellular Therapeutics, Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute, City of Hope, Duarte, CA

  • 2015-2017 Adjunct Associate Professor, Larry L. Hillblom Islet Research Center, Department of Medicine/Endocrinology University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

  • 2008-2014 Assistant Researcher, Larry L. Hillblom Islet Research Center, Department of Medicine/Endocrinology University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

Research

Research Area 

Epigenetic regulation of functional beta cell mass in health and disease

Overview

The Dhawan lab focuses on understanding the biology of insulin producing beta-cells. Both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are associated with the loss of pancreatic beta-cells, making the replacement of beta-cells an important therapeutic goal. Approaches to this end include generating beta-cells from stem cells, and protecting and reviving existing beta-cells. In pursuit of this, we study the epigenetic mechanisms that regulate the formation, function, regeneration and survival of beta-cells in homeostasis, and their failure in diabetes. 

Visit the Dhawan Lab

Publications

  • Parveen N, Wang JK, Bhattacharya S, Cuala J, Rajkumar MS, Butler AE, Wu X, Shih HP, Georgia SK, Dhawan S. DNA methylation dependent restriction of Tyrosine Hydroxylase contributes to pancreatic beta cell heterogeneity. Diabetes. 2023 May 1; 72(5): 575-589. doi: 10.2337/db22-0506.** **Highlighted in the “In this issue” section of the journal. Accompanied by a commentary article, written by Dr. C. Aguayo-Mazzucato and Dr. M. Stitzel: doi: 10.2337/dbi23-0001.
  • Varghese SS, Dhawan S.  Senescence: A Double-Edged Sword in Beta-Cell Health and Failure?  Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023;14: 1196460. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1196460. eCollection 2023.
  • Ma K, Dhawan S. Yo-yo dieting: mixed messages for β-cell plasticity. Diabetes. 2022 Nov 1; 71(11): 2253-2255. doi: 10.2337/dbi22-0024.
  • Spaeth JM, Dhawan S. The Yin and Yang of Modulating β-Cell DNA Damage Response and Functional Mass. Diabetes. 2022 Aug 1;71(8):1614-1616. doi: 10.2337/dbi22-0010.
  • Varghese SS, Dhawan S. Polycomb Repressive Complexes: Shaping Pancreatic Beta-Cell Destiny in Development and Metabolic Disease. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2022;10:868592. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2022.868592.
  • Georgia S, Arda HE, Martinez-Sanchez A, Dhawan S. Editorial: Epigenetics of Glucose Homeostasis. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2022;13:889189. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2022.889189. eCollection 2022.
  • Parveen N, Dhawan S. DNA Methylation Patterning and the Regulation of Beta Cell Homeostasis. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2021;12:651258. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2021.651258. eCollection 2021.
  • Rodnoi P., Rajkumar M., Md Moin A.S., Georgia S.K., Butler A.E., Dhawan S. Neuropeptide Y expression marks partially differentiated beta-cells in mice and humans. JCI Insight. 2017; 2(12). doi: 10.1172/jci.insight.94005
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